A TCU win over Oklahoma isn’t such a rare thing when looking back at the history of clashes between the two teams, but at this point in time it’s a huge upset. The Horned Frogs came out with a 37-33 win against the undefeated Sooners thanks to a big game from Treyvone Boykin and on the opposite end, Trevor Knight making too many mistakes.
Not that Boykin didn’t make any mistakes. He fumbled the ball once and also threw an interception. But as always, the numbers might not tell the whole story, and it’s about the timing of those mistakes. Knight was intercepted twice, and Oklahoma fumbled the ball inside the TCU 30 on a 4th and 1 with just over three minutes to go. That was their last shot at trying to get back control of a game they should have had firmly in their grasp, while TCU went on to remain one of the two undefeated teams in the Big 12.
Boykin turned the ball over way too much, but he also threw touchdown passes to wide open receivers in Deante’ Gray and B.J. Catalon. Oklahoma did a good job in slowing down the TCU running game, limited to just 3.9 yards per play. However, they had too many holes in their secondary, allowing Boykin to throw for 318 yards while also rushing for 77. Catalon also ran for one touchdown, averaging 4.4 yards per carry.
The Sooners got their touchdowns on the ground mostly, as Samaje Perine ran for three touchdowns. Trevor Knight added 61 yards on the ground, but it was his awful 14-of-35 for 309 yards that proved to be the most costly for Oklahoma, who might be having a case of struggling to focus against opponents they don’t have enough motivation to beat. The defensive lapses, the sluggishness on offense – those didn’t come when Stoops was hyped up about beating an SEC team or walking away with a win from Morgantown.
Trevor Knight tried to keep an optimistic tone at the end of the affair: This isn’t the defining moment of our season. There’s a lot of football left. Who knows what’s down the road. It’s early in the season, a one-loss team can still make it. They just straight outplayed us. Boykin is unpredictable. He managed to get out of trouble when we thought we had him trapped.
A one loss team can obviously make it. All the assumptions and planning get thrown out the window, because each season is different. But for Oklahoma, who seemed like a shoe-in to be among the chosen four when this season is over, it’s a tough way to climb back up the mountain. With a schedule that includes a ranked Kansas State, Oklahoma State and undefeated Baylor it means there is quality to push their bid, but they’ll need to win the conference. That goes without saying for TCU, who don’t have the name power of Oklahoma, or the privilege of playing in the SEC, where losses are forgiven by the voters.